


The Octopus and the Squid

by Lamia of the Dark (VisceraNight)



Series: Psychometry [9]
Category: Skip Beat!
Genre: Awkwardness, Fluff, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-31
Updated: 2015-08-31
Packaged: 2018-04-18 07:11:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4696967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VisceraNight/pseuds/Lamia%20of%20the%20Dark
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Little Cain finds a lost toy and makes a new friend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Octopus and the Squid

~ The Octopus and the Squid ~

Unlike normal children, eight-year-old Cain Hizuri does not particularly look forward to recess. Other children his age do not like quiet games where no one touches each other, so Cain wanders off alone to sit in the grass and play with his favorite toy - a stuffed octopus named Burrito-kun which his mother made for him.

Today when he goes to his usual spot, he finds something strange. There is a stuffed toy squid laying in the grass.

Cain twists two of Burrito-kun's tentacles into a loose knot and hangs the octopus around his neck for safekeeping before kneeling next to the abandoned squid and cautiously reaching out to it...

* * *

He doesn't normally go to the part of the playground where the kindergartners like to play, but Inky-chan's memories told him that he'll find the lost squid's owner here.

The little girl is crying when he finds her, which makes it awkward for Cain to approach her, especially when one of the other little girls points at him and yells, "Hey, aren't you that boy who got in trouble for hitting people?"

Cain scowls and the younger children scatter in fear, leaving just him and the crying girl.

"Nina... chan...?" he says hesitantly.

The girl rubs her eyes and looks up at him.

"How did you know my name?" she asks.

"Inky-chan told me," he replies.

Nina lights up when she sees the squid in Cain's arms and she runs to him immediately, all notion of caution forgotten at the prospect of being reunited with her beloved toy.

"Inky-chan!" she squeals, hugging the squid. "Yay, you found her!" After a few moments she looks up from nuzzling the toy and notices that Cain is still standing there watching her. "Hey, you got an octopus!" she says, spotting Burrito-kun dangling from Cain's neck. "Want to play?"

She wiggles one of Inky-chan's tentacles at him.

Cain just stares for a moment. He does not make friends easily and has never had another child happily invite him to play with them. (His sister doesn't count, she's just a baby.) He wonders what the correct response is. Should he smile? Introduce himself?

"Sure, let's play," he says, detaching the octopus from himself and holding it in his arms. "I'm Cain, and this is Burrito-kun." He picks up one of the octopus's tentacles and makes Burrito-kun wave 'hi' to Nina and Inky-chan.

Nina giggles.

"Why is he named Burrito? Isn't that food?"

"My grandpa named him. Grandpa's weird," Cain replies with a shrug.

* * *

Nina Fuwa does not understand why her father is upset when she introduces him to her new friend and tells him that she's going to marry Cain when she grows up.

~oOo~

**Author's Note:**

> The octopus's name is a cross-lingual pun. Tako (Japanese for octopus) -> taco -> burrito. Kuu is the one who named it.


End file.
